Breathless
by PolarisAmane
Summary: ...And yet here she was, left breathless by such a simple game... It wasn't really about winning, just about who she played with.


**Genre – Humour... uh and I guess romance.**

**Rating – K**

**A/N – This is my entry for the BA YoruSoi FC fluff competition. It's complete nonsense in the nicest possible way.**

**Or maybe I'm just deluded and it's just nonsense. Either way; enjoy!**

**Oh, and Suì-Fēng only has one arm because I dig one-armed ****Suì-Fēng**** (yes, I am aware that that's probably weird)**

**Disclaimer – I don't own Bleach but if my housemate did then Yachiru would be a fully grown, big-boobed, pimped out bitch. And she'd be hot. ... yea... Those were his exact words.**

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Breathless

She crouched low, ignoring the cold wind that tickled her whiskers and the soft snow that clung to her fur.

She remained still, watching her prey before her, completely unaware of her presence.

She prowled, small powerful legs surging her forward with controlled precision.

She froze. Her quarry raised her own head and looked around, a frown cresting her face, her body tense as if preparing to flee. Seconds trailed into minutes and the minutes gave way to even more minutes. Still neither one moved. And then, with an audible exhale, the prey turned away from the hunter, letting down her guard.

_Now!_

Snow exploded behind the acceleration of the small body as she propelled herself forward. All pretences of stealth abandoned for speed, for power and for the sheer exhilaration of knowing – just _knowing_ – that her prey was within her grasp. She cut through the air like a precision missile, zeroing in on her target.

She had won.

And then something collided with her chest. It wasn't hard, but then it wasn't soft either, sturdy was probably the best term to describe it. It almost seemed to welcome her, drawing her in. The world spun; grey sky to pure white snow, back to grey sky and silver dusted trees, finally stopping and giving her a view of Seireitei, the buildings topped with piles of gleaming white snow.

She was cradled gently into warmth and a hand was supporting her small body.

"I win," Suì-Fēng said triumphantly in a breathless voice.

Yoruichi could hear her laboured breathing, and wondered at the girl's ability to cover miles in a single bound and not break a sweat, to run for hours on end and barely gasp, her wind often seemed endless and her stamina something to envy.

And yet here she was, left breathless by such a simple game.

"Hmph!" Yoruichi turned her head. "I'm still in the lead. This is the first time you've won."

Suì-Fēng's breath stilled for a moment and then she exhaled, pulling Yoruichi closer into her own body. Yoruichi could feel Suì-Fēng's heart beating at a near frantic pace, could almost hear it with her acute feline ears.

"That's true," Suì-Fēng agreed.

"Today's conditions were hardly in my favour," Yoruichi continued as she surveyed their surroundings. Snow covered the field. She must have stuck out like a sore thumb.

"You should always be aware of your surroundings, Yoruichi-Sama," Suì-Fēng said, a slight teasing quality to her voice.

They had been playing a game for quite some time now, weeks, months; Yoruichi wasn't sure exactly how long or why they had started playing it. What did it matter when she had finally found a game that Suì-Fēng wasn't only willing to play but actually enjoyed as well?

The game was simple; Yoruichi would stalk Suì-Fēng, keeping herself carefully hidden, hunting her down and then she would strike when Suì-Fēng was least expecting it. The first time Suì-Fēng had nearly jumped out of her own skin, the second time she had professed annoyance at her former Senpai's antics, but the third time she had been on guard, expecting the attack. Although she had failed to accurately defend herself against Yoruichi's onslaught.

It had only made the game all the more fun.

It was now a common routine for them. While in her cat form, Yoruichi's spiritual pressure was completely suppressed, making her impossible to sense. This meant that Suì-Fēng had to rely on other means to figure out where the Goddess was hiding. She was becoming very good at it, but this had been the first time that she had won.

"True," Yoruichi agreed. "Though the snow will only work in your advantage for a while. Once it melts I'll go right back to winning."

"You sound very confident."

"I see no reason why I shouldn't be." Oh, she sounded so smug.

"You really think I haven't been paying attention? That I haven't been figuring out your pattern of attack?"

Yoruichi's eyes narrowed. She didn't have a pattern of attack, she was very careful to make sure that her visits were sporadic, her movements erratic, her attacks unknown. She was a master of stealth, completely unreadable and untraceable when she wanted to be.

Even to Suì-Fēng. It was a thousand years too early for the girl to ever be able to beat Yoruichi in any game. Never mind this game.

"I've got you figured out," Suì-Fēng continued, "even when the snow melts you'll never win again."

"I doubt that," Yoruichi answered, Suì-Fēng's confident tone grating against Yoruichi's competitive nature. Childish as it might have been, Yoruichi wasn't ready for Suì-Fēng to start beating her in anything. She'd allow her these odd games, an empty victory now and again. On fair ground, when the playing field was even, then Yoruichi won. She had always won. And dammit, she was going to continue to win.

"You're bluffing," said Yoruichi, voicing her thoughts out loud. "You have nothing on me."

Suì-Fēng remained quiet, probably mulling over Yoruichi's words, and finally she sighed.

"You're right." She laughed quietly and without humour. "I can't read your movements at all. Once the snow melts I'll lose my advantage and you'll go right back to winning."

"Are we feeling sour?"

"I've come up with a new tactic," Suì-Fēng said, ignoring Yoruichi's barb. "I can't read your movements, I can't sense you when you are in cat form, and this leaves me blind to your attacks. I cannot see you; I cannot sense you and I cannot hear you. I can feel you once you have caught me but that hardly helps. The only thing that is consistent throughout is that you remain downwind of me."

"Could you really pick me out by smell?"

"Obviously you think so or else you wouldn't make the effort to conceal it from me," She replied. She thought on it a moment. "Or perhaps you just like to keep me upwind of you for some other reason. It hardly matters though; I cannot rely on my senses."

"What then is your new tactic?" Yoruichi was genuinely curious; obviously Suì-Fēng thought that it would work since she was confident enough in it to explain it to Yoruichi.

Suì-Fēng took a moment to reply. She clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth several times as she considered her words. And then, with an emphatic nod, she spoke.

"I am going to have to cheat."

"Cheat? Wha- oomph!" Yoruichi's stomach lurched as she plummeted down. The snow covered ground cushioned her fall as she landed on her side. She tried to scramble to her feet but was weighed down by, of all things, Suì-Fēng's leg. She struggled but was held firm. There was a pressure... something unfamiliar... or perhaps it was vaguely familiar and tickled at the edges of her memory... Suì-Fēng's hand was on her neck; her touch was oddly comforting despite the irrational flare of panic being held down caused.

And then – like an arrow loosed from a bow – she was free! She darted from beneath Suì-Fēng's leg, sending clouds of light snow into the air as her feet kicked it up in her haste to escape, and skidded to a stop. Her heart was beating unnaturally fast and she had to take several deep calming breaths to aid it to return it to its normal pace. Anger surged through her and she whipped around, jingling softly, ready to unleash her fury on...

Wait.

Jingle?

Yoruichi frowned in confusion, she looked down at the source of the strange noise but her feline form prevented her from seeing what was there. She jumped to the side and listened as she jingled from take off and then again on her landing. There was still an odd pressure on her neck, tugging at her memory.

"I hope you will forgive me, Yoruichi-Sama," Suì-Fēng said, not sounding very sorry in the least, more amused than anything else.

Yoruichi turned her golden eyes to Suì-Fēng. She was kneeling in the snow her single hand lying flat on her knee and holding a package of some description. She was clearly trying very hard not to smile.

"You've put a collar on me," Yoruichi accused.

"A collar with a bell," Suì-Fēng confirmed. "I'll be able to hear you now."

Yoruichi took a step towards the girl and then stopped as a light tinkling noise assailed her hearing.

"Not only that but," Suì-Fēng lifted the packaging and inspected it. "Apparently it has this little rubber band to it, in case you fall out of a tree. It'll stretch or snap so you don't hang yourself."

"How thoughtful of you."

"And..." Here Suì-Fēng sniggered slightly and lowered the packaging so that she could look Yoruichi in the eyes. "It also prevents you from getting fleas."

_... Fleas?_

"I don't have fleas!" Yoruichi growled.

"And you never will have so long as you wear the collar," Suì-Fēng informed her, her eyes wide in mock innocence.

"Where did you get that anyways?" Yoruichi demanded. It certainly wasn't the kind of object that could be found around Seireitei.

"Three guesses, Yoruichi-Sama, but I think that you'll only need one."

Yoruichi frowned. There was no way that Suì-Fēng would have procured anything from _him. _She hated him with a blinding passion. If he had been on fire then the only reason that Suì-Fēng would have put him out was so that she could enjoy the sight of him dying slowly from his burns.

"Kisuke?"

"Told you you'd only need the one guess," Suì-Fēng said, sounding entirely too pleased with herself.

"Take it off."

"Are you angry, Yoruichi-Sama?"

Yoruichi hissed at her. Of all the reactions Suì-Fēng could have expressed; anger, hurt, indignation or even something more apologetic, what she did next was not at all what Yoruichi had expected.

She laughed.

It started small; her hand went to her mouth muffling the sound, her gaze averted from Yoruichi. Apparently though, her sheer delight could not be expressed with by such a simple gesture. Her head bowed as her laughter escalated in volume and her shoulders shook with the intensity of her amusement until she was damn near howling with glee, her rigid composure completely forgotten. Finally she managed to control her laughter, bringing her head up to face Yoruichi, her hand rubbing at her eyes wiping away a tear of mirth. She exhaled, her smile still fixed in place.

"You should have seen your face."

"I'm sure it was a sight," Yoruichi dead panned. Whatever brief anger Yoruichi may have felt was lifted by the sight of Suì-Fēng's smile. She didn't smile, or laugh for that matter, often enough in Yoruichi's opinion and it give Yoruichi no end of satisfaction to hear her give in to such joy.

Even if it had come at Yoruichi's expense.

"I am sorry, Yoruichi-Sama," Suì-Fēng said, attempting to fix a serious look to her face but failing. "I shouldn't have laughed."

"That's alright," Yoruichi replied. She trotted over, ignoring the sound of the bell on her neck jingling away. "I suppose that's two victories for you in one day. I'll just have to make sure that next time we meet that I show you no – Ooh!" Her threats descended into a low moan and eventual purr as Suì-Fēng's hand rubbed over her head. She pushed herself harder into Suì-Fēng's insistent hand and her purring increased when Suì-Fēng scratched behind her ear in just the right spot.

Suì-Fēng chuckled softly as Yoruichi made her way to her lap, her front paws kneading at her thighs as she continued to purr merrily. "Sometimes I think you forget that you're not really a cat."

"It feels very good," Yoruichi told her, still enjoying the feel of Suì-Fēng's fingers working against her head. "You should try it sometime."

"I think I'll pass," she said her voice soft. "And this makes it three to me today."

"If you say so," Yoruichi said, feeling a little too happy to refute Suì-Fēng's claims of yet another victory.

Yoruichi frowned suddenly when Suì-Fēng's hand stopped its endeavours and moved away from her. She lifted her head, about to ask Suì-Fēng why she had stopped when she noticed something. "It's snowing again," she said feeling slightly disappointed. "We should head back; if you stay out too long you might catch a chill."

Suì-Fēng looked down at her. "Me? What about you?"

"Fur coat remember," Yoruichi said happily. She danced back from Suì-Fēng, and then shook herself to emphasise her coat. She grimaced at the sound of that damned bell. "Don't suppose you'll take this collar off of me?"

"Not a chance." Suì-Fēng jumped to her feel, dishevelling snow from herself. "I quite like the idea of being able to hear exactly where you are."

With an amused shake of her head, Yoruichi followed after Suì-Fēng as she trudged through the snow covered field and back towards Seireitei. The snow was thicker now and Yoruichi had to take small bounds to make her way through it. Suì-Fēng was ahead of her, easily marching through the snow. Yoruichi, in her small feline form, was finding the snow a bit more of a challenge. She really didn't want to revert back to her human form, she would be naked and it was very cold, but it was proving rather difficult to walk through the snow.

Not to mention that the damned bell was grating on her nerves.

She stopped and shook herself again. Sighing, she decided that she would have no choice but to change back to her natural form, only to find herself being scooped up from the snow and the cold and embraced into familiar warmth.

"I couldn't hear you," Suì-Fēng said simply.

Yoruichi opened her mouth to answer but only inhaled sharply as Suì-Fēng pulled her in closer. She found herself feeling suddenly breathless as though in the simple action of picking her up, Suì-Fēng had stolen it away. Yoruichi settled for nuzzling her head into Suì-Fēng's neck and with purring with gratitude at the security and the warmth that Suì-Fēng provided.

"That's four to me."

"Once I get this collar off I am going to make you pay," Yoruichi answered.

A wicked smirk made its way up Suì-Fēng's face. "Do you promise?"

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**Ahahahaha! That was kind of wank D: Hurray for nonsensical claptrap! **

**I'm not really all that happy with this, it feels sort of forced and isn't at all how I planned it. Oh well, can't be helped (well it could, I mean I could have put in way more effort but I'm really lazy and it's snowing outside and I want to go make a snowman)**


End file.
